Melbourne part 2

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At the beginning of November, I moved into a share house in Thornbury, which is located to the North of the city. Prior to moving in, I was told by a few people that Thornbury is an up incoming suburb in Melbourne, which is quickly becoming one of the cool spots outwith the centre to live. The suburb next door, Northcote, is also a very hip bohemian place, and supposedly has an excellent music venue in the Northcote Social Club. Anyway, the house I moved into is very nice, with my room certainly being a decent size for the price I'm paying for it. I live with two girls, both of whom are fine to live with, but they are certainly not the kind of people who I would normally be friends with. They are a cross between new-age travelers and hippies (hairy armpits and all!), minus the stereotypical smelliness.

In the week I moved into Thornbury, I had a 4 day gig working at The Spring racing Carnival in the fabled Myer Marquee. Myer is a massive Australian fashion chain, which has stores throughout OZ. At the briefing day, we were told that there was going to be numerous VIPs, celebrities and that we were to cater to the guests every need as best as possible (Even if this meant turning a blind eye to the guests partaking in some illegal substances!). All the waiters and bar staff were male, and had been chosen because they had sufficient experience and the 'look' deemed appropriate. At the briefing everyone was friendly, but it soon became apparent that about half the guys employed 'played for the other team'.

Despite the atrocious weather the first couple of days, the 4 day gig was great fun. I think because the company employed to do the catering wanted everything to go perfectly so made sure there were plenty of staff on hand. This meant that it was never overly stressful, and as everyone in the marquee was there to party, and this made everything that bit more fun. The first 2 days I was topping up champagne and chatting to guests. The last 2 days I was on the free bar (of course) serving drinks. Over the 4 days numerous Aussie celebs came into the marquee (most of which were wasted on me) but the ones I did recognise were Mel B, Shane Warne, Jennifer Hawkins, Jerry Hall, Dame Edna, Danny Cipriani, Georgie Jagger, Geof Bridges and a guy from Masterchef. On the night of the last of the race days, we all went out as a group for some drinks. The recruiting team at Myer had done there job well, as all the guys were sociable and friendly, meaning we all got on well. That night, we met at this rooftop bar in the centre of the city which had a fantastic view of Melbourne at night. Our boss bought a few rounds as thanks for our efforts, which we readily accepted. After exchanging numbers with a few of the guys to meet up in the future, I left to catch my tram home.

Also during that first week in Thornbury, I spent a day traversing the fantastic Melbourne museum, and spend a lot of time sitting in quaint little cafe's reading a book. It is worth mentioning that the Melbournians love their coffee, and therefore most coffee you experience here is immense. Since I came to Melbourne, I have definitely become a lover of fine coffee (and this coming from a self-confessed tea lover!). So much so that, upon my return to Scotland, I think I will invest in a coffee machine. As I don't think I could ever go back to instant.

During November, I also went to the Australian Masters Golf with my friend Rhys. As the money to win the tournament was not the biggest, the only big name golfers there were Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcias. Nevertheless, with sun shining, a good atmosphere and half a bottle of rum in my rucksack, it was a thoroughly enjoyable day. We saw some lovely shots, and even got to see Tiger hit a few.

I had a few nights out during November. Me and one of the Myer lads who I'd become chummy with, Nathan, went out to the local venue in Northcote to see a gig, before going out afterwards. I joined another Myer chum, Ben, and a few of his friends for a few drinks down Brunswick Street way (one of the places to go for a night out in Melbourne). What was supposed to be just a few drinks turned into proper night out, as we ended up at a friend of a friends house party. It was an excellent night, as spontaneous nights tend to be, with the house party being full to the brim with revelers. Another night, all three of us went to an impromptu Warehouse party in town. The night started well, but as it progressed, my nice jacket was lost (from no fault of my own I might add). Then, rather foolishly, I thought that we would end the night by going to the casino and winning the value of my jacket back. I wont go into detail, but alas, I ended the night even worse off in the money stakes than when I entered the casino.

Throughout the month, I was pretty much working full-time, and so did not have as much of a chance to socialise, if i'd had a big wad of cash. There were times this month that I did feel a bit frustrated and a tad lonely. As I chose to go down the short-term rental route, and not the hostel one, it has left me with a smaller pool of friends to call upon. What with all of them being Aussie, most were either working full-time themselves, or had to revise for upcoming exams. Therefore, it could be difficult to get hold of someone to socialise with. Nevertheless, I would still say that I have enjoyed my second month, and hope the third will be even better.

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